Vince Verbeke

Anyone traveling to Mount Nittany’s trailhead for a scenic hike will have passed through a little Pennsylvania village named Lemont. Lemont is the community at the base of Mount Nittany. Or, perhaps another way of thinking of it is that Lemont is something like Mount Nittany’s base camp and is, in fact, the true start of a Mount Nittany hike.

John Blair Linn (1831-1899)’s the History of Centre and Clinton Counties, Pennsylvania, which was published in 1883, explains (pp. 274-275) how “Lemont” received its name:

William Thompson, a brother of Moses, is a justice of the peace, active in township affairs, and alive to its interests. He lives near where Robert Moore, the “ex press- rider” of early days, began his little “clearing.” John I. Thompson, son of Moses, and who gave the name to “Lemont,” resides in the little village he named.

Besides his business interests he has taken a great interest in the mineral wealth of the county, and is a practical chemist. He has a fine chemical laboratory in the stone bank building, where he analyzes ores, etc., for parties who desire it. Dr. J. Y. Dale, of Lemont, is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, of the “class of ’67,” and has been secretary of the “Medical Society of Centre County.” The doctor has a beautiful residence in Lemont and a large practice. D. F. Taylor keeps the only drug-store in the town. He is married to a descendant of David Whitehill, the original settler of the place. Lemont was the home of “old Dr. Berry,” one of the most widely-known physicians in the county, a genial old gentleman, who gave less medicine and more common sense to his patients than some of his contemporaries.

Dr. Benjamin Jones Berry was a graduate of the University of New York. He practiced thirty-four years at Lemont, and died in 1864. The Berry mansion is still standing. Like “Gil Bias’” system of medicine, blood- letting was necessary, sick or well, and the writer has a vivid recollection of the doctor’s power as a “blood- letter,” and “a successful operation” it was. Dr. Berry was one of the vice-presidents of the first County Medical Society, which was organized in 1847. J. Green Irvin is a prominent man in the town- ship, and is a relative of Gen. Irvin, who built the mill and stone mansion at Oak Hall. He has a very handsome residence a short distance from Dr. Hamil’s, between Boalsburg and Oak Hall. James Glenn, a sterling old Presbyterian, and father of Dr. J. P. Glenn, of Snow Shoe, is another of the prominent citizens of the township. Hon. Samuel Gilliland, before mentioned as having been once a representative in the Pennsylvania Legislature, lives beyond Oak Hall a short distance. He is the owner of an elegant farm, which from its high state of cultivation shows that theory united with practical farming will produce great results.

Daniel O’Brien’s log school-house, with its slab benches and big open fireplace, has given place to the elegant little school-house at Lemont (which stands less than a quarter of a mile from where stood its unpretentious predecessor), and to the magnificent pile of buildings known as the “Pennsylvania State College.”

“The End of the Mountain” has given place to the shorter but more euphonious name of “Le Mont.” …

Lemont, a pretty little village, situated at the ” end of the mountain,” is the largest town in the township. It is built on land owned and cleared by David Whitehill, Esq. After passing through two or three hands it was purchased by Moses Thompson, Esq. In 1870, Mr. Thompson laid out the present village. Among the first buildings erected were the store and dwelling-house of J. H. Hahn, now owned by Thompson & Co., the elegant residences of J. J. Thompson and Dr. J. Y. Dale, the former built of stone. The Presbyterian Church, a building of the Gothic style of architecture, is one of the handsomest church edifices in the county. The cost, including furniture, was about fourteen thousand dollars. Lemont, or, as our fathers called it, ” the end of the mountain,” was an important point in the early days of the country, being on the trail leading from the settlements on the West Branch and Bald Eagle to those in Penn’s valley, and being at the junction of the two valleys. The village contains a church, school-house, drug-store, dry-goods store, tin-shop, blacksmith-shop, etc. It is on the line of the Lewisburg and Tyrone Railroad, and will be the terminus of a proposed railroad from Bellefonte. They have recently organized a brass band, which, though very young, promises to be one of the best in the county.

Steve Blake shared these photos of Mount Nittany earlier today, just hours prior to the Penn State/Ohio State Whiteout at Beaver Stadium.

We have the saddest of news to share today. One of Mt. Nittany’s staunchest friends, Patrick Scholl, passed away on March 13, 2016.

Patrick along with his wife Jan were great supporters of the Mountain. Patrick was a longtime Board Member, and served as Treasurer of the Conservancy from November 2001 to November 2008.

Patrick, your final resting spot may be far away, but you will forever be remembered by those that knew and loved you. As mentioned in your obituary below, we hope that people do take in a Spikes game in your honor. They can then look out at Mt. Nittany and be grateful for your tireless work to protect it.

Imparting wisdom at Nov 20, 2010 meeting.

Patrick Scholl
1952-2016

Patrick J. Scholl, 63, of State College, Pennsylvania died March 13, 2016 at home. He was born to Edwin and Patricia Scholl of Rockwell, Iowa. He is survived by his mother, his wife Jan, and brother, Daniel, mayor of Humboldt, Iowa. His sister, Rose Ann, and father are deceased. Patrick was the Director of Business and Finance for the Penn State University Alumni Association for 28 years and was well known in the State College community. He held a similar position in the College of Agriculture at the University of Wyoming and was the manager of research contracts and grants at Iowa State University.

He received a B.S. degree in accounting from ISU, an MBA from Drake University, and was a doctoral candidate at Penn State. He was certified as a CPA for 30 years.

An active parishioner of Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in State College, Patrick served as lector, Eucharistic minister, and assisted with pre-cana instruction. He was also on the Penn State Credit Union board for several terms and the coordinating committee for the annual Juvenile Diabetes Research walk-a-thon.

He traveled to various parts of the world with alumni, including: Costa Rica, Ireland, Russia and the Scandinavian countries. He sailed through the Panama Canal. Patrick received a 50 year medal from the Joslin Diabetes Center and the Alumni Association’s Mentor and Lewis and Karen Gold awards.

Patrick was a baseball fan with season tickets to Spikes games. He visited major league stadiums and annually aired a “Who’s on First” radio segment with local announcer, Steve Jones. On road trips to Iowa he stopped to see the “Field of Dreams, near Dyersville. A memorial Mass for Patrick will be held Saturday, April 9 at 10:30 AM at the Our Lady of Victory Church, 820 Westerly Parkway, followed by a reception in the social hall. Interment will be in Iowa at the convenience of the family.

The family requests no calls, deliveries or visitations at home at this time. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the church’s Gabriel Project, the Penn State Alumni Association, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, or by purchasing a Spikes baseball ticket to enjoy a summer game.